Egypt president-elect starts consultations on team

Mon Jun 25th 2012

An aide to Egypt's president-elect says Mohammed Morsi has moved into the office once occupied by ousted leader Hosni Mubarak and has started consultations on forming his team and a new government.

Yasser Ali, a spokesman for the presidential campaign, said the 60-year-old Morsi arrived at the presidential office today for official meetings and consultations.

On Sunday, Morsi was declared winner of Egypt's first presidential runoff following a tight race with Mubarak's last Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq. The campaigns deeply polarized the country.

Morsi has said that forming a national coalition government and a widely representative presidential team was a priority.

Ali anticipates the current military-backed government could remain in a caretaker role for a while. He says forming a new one "will take time."